Urban Renewal Award
Finalist: The Molopo River Basin Project
Michelle Nel
Mafikeng, the capital of the North West province, has been the cradle of the scouting movement ever since it was conceived by British General Robert Stephenson Baden-Powell during his time there.
Scouting enjoys a membership of 30-million worldwide and has the potential to attract tourists to Mafikeng from all corners of the globe.
The town was suffering neglect, poverty and high unemployment until an enthusiastic project team from the North West Department of Developmental Local Government and Housing decided to do something about it.
An ambitious revitalisation project to upgrade Mafikeng and create Africa’s first World Centre for Scouting and Youth was set in motion with a R13-million grant provided by the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) a few years ago.
“The centre is not just the first on the continent, but also the first scout centre of excellence in nature and the environment because of its use of environmentally friendly building techniques,” says project manager Cyril Ratnam.
The design of the centre incorporates passive solar principles to keep energy use low; large windows absorb heat during the day and keep the visitor chalets warm at night. Waste water is recycled through a special wetlands system and solar panels provide water heating. Rainwater is captured and used for irrigation.
The centre was officially opened in 1999 by scouting dignatories from around the world. It was enthusiastically received and there were offers of financial support from international scouting bodies. “This points to the need to build more eco-friendly, affordable buildings,” says Ratnam.
Mafikeng itself has benefited from the developments. All places of historical importance are now signposted and tourism infrastructure has been beefed up. The Molopo river, which runs through the town, has been cleaned up and small-scale entrepreneurs are making a good living at centralised hawking stalls.
The project has brought together the Department of Local Government as the facilitator and the Mafikeng town council as the implementer. It has also drawn in local tribal authorities, the North West Parks Board, local business, craftsmen and cultural organisations.
Empowerment was a priority, so the team had to ensure that local labour was used and that people received skills training in the course of improving the river corridor and city. It created jobs, some of which were reserved for women, youths and disabled people.
In order to access the RDP money, the project had to show that it had other financial support and it did, counting more than R60-million from provincial government and private enterprise.
Work was divided into three sectors: the city, the river and tourism facilities. The council’s budget of R6-million was spent on cleaning the city, improving infrastructure, providing facilities for taxis, buses and informal traders, and making the city safer. The river corridor had a budget of R3,5-million that was used to clean the river basin, clear overgrown areas and improve historical sites and recreational areas. The tourism budget of R3,5-million covered the building of the scout centre inside the Mafikeng game reserve and upgrading recreational areas throughout the city.
Last year Ratnam’s energetic team in the North West Department of Developmental Local Government and Housing was voted the overall winner in the emerging category of the Green Trust Awards for an innovative waste-salvaging project. This year’s honour shows that the team is consistently working on improving the lot of its constituency.